This invention relates to an electronic watch and more particularly to an attachment for an electronic wrist watch that allows to activate the displaying of a set of watch data such as horological data, with only one hand of said watch wearer.
In order to aid understanding of this invention and to simplify the disclosure thereof, the following definitions are submitted:
A. Conventional electronic watches: electronic watches that do not embody the present invention.
B. A set of watch data: a set of data generated by the electronics of a watch which has any kind of attachment on its case and its band. Beyond horological data, it is conceivable that a future watch, with more sophiscated electronics and attachments, can provide many more kinds of data, a set of which can be selected for display by action of a switch in a sequential manner or in combination with a plurality of other switches.
C. A watch system: a conglomeration composed of a case containing most parts of the watch, a band attached to said case, means to secure said band around the left or right wrist of a person, and any attachment secured to said case and band.
D. Two-hand operations of a watch: operations in which the watch wearer has to move simultanuously his one hand which is near the wrist wearing the watch and another hand, whether his own second hand or somebody else's, in order to cause the displaying of a set of watch data.
E. One-hand operations of a watch: operations in which the watch wearer has to move only the one wrist that wears the watch in order to cause the displaying of a set of watch data.
A conventional watch of the type having digital display with light-emitting diodes requires the pushing of a certain button located on the case of said watch in order to activate the electronic circuit for the displaying of a set of data of said watch, typically a set of horological data such as time, day of the week and date of the month. Some watches of the type aforementioned allow several sets of data of the same watch to be displayed consecutively with consecutive pushings of a single button on the case of said watch. This practice of activating the display only when necessary is observed to conserve the energy of the watch batteries so that they need be changed only about once a year in normal use.
A major objection to purchasing and using one of these conventional watches is the fact that, while wearing such a watch on the wrist of one hand, the pushing of any of the buttons located on the case of said watch can be done only in a practical manner with the wearer's second hand which is connected to the wrist that does not wear said watch at that particular moment. Unfortunately, this wearer's second hand is not always available.
The aforementioned objection still persists with another type of conventional watches which are equipped with a set of liquid-crystal display. Although displaying continuously one particular set of data, said watches would require also a two-hand operation in the case when the wearer wants to read a set of data other than the one being displayed, or in the case when the wearer wants to read the display in the dark and said watches are equipped with a light-radiating means that requires a button on the case of said watches to be pushed for reading of the liquid-crystal display in situations when ambiant light is not bright enough.
Thus, these two-hand operations of conventional electronic watches as discussed above are not convenient, or worse still, not safe, easy or possible in many situations when a normal wearer of such a watch is engaging in a normal activity such as driving a car, piloting a plane, writing, holding a glass, dancing, embracing someone etc.
Another type of conventional watch with light-emitting-diode display permits one-hand operations by shaking the wrist wearing such a watch in a definite movement to cause a mercury switch to turn on the display; but such movement is relatively vigorous and restricted to a certain pattern, hence inconvenient and awkward. Besides, the prices of these watches are relatively high because of that one-hand operation feature.
Overcoming the above difficulties in the operation of an electronic watch equipped with a digital display, the present invention is designed to eliminate the troublesome problems by providing a low-cost means of activating a selected display of an electronic watch equipped with digital display, by a slight and unconspicuous movement of only the wrist wearing said watch.